Don't Trust Random Pizzas!
by BurnThoseEyesBlue
Summary: Mikey is in for a big lesson in this one. When he inadvertently brings home contaminated pizza, the turtles have to deal with some interesting turn of events...
1. Chapter 1 - Mikey, wrud?

**Long time no write. I'm posting another incredibly old fic I wrote in ~2012. Hope it's still enjoyable, as I haven't watched the TV show in years.**

 **Also, out of curiosity, did a 2017 Stealthy Stories fanfic competition ever happen this year? I follow the blog on Tumblr, but never saw any info about it.**

 **Enjoy.**

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"Dude, what I would do for a warm slice of pizza right about now! Warm... savory... mmmmm..." Michelangelo drooled at the thought, then shook his head rapidly to clear the images of dancing pizza from his mind. He was out on patrol right now, and Leo would _kill_ him if he missed some sort of suspicious activity because he was too busy daydreaming. Not that it had ever stopped him before, but he was on his best behavior right now to convince him to get said pizza when finished. Sadly, he trudged on, leaping past the alley and screeching to a stop. He backtracked and stood in the mouth of the alley, gaping at what sat before him.

"No way!" he gasped. A box of full, steaming pizza lay open on one of the dumpsters. "All right!" He bounded up to it and sniffed at it. Who would just leave a pizza alone like this? He looked over his shoulder suspiciously. Well, it smelled okay. Better than okay, actually. Mikey's stomach growled, and he patted his carapace tenderly. He looked around one more time and shrugged. "Here's to not sharing with your piggy bros!" He picked up a slice and chomped down, eyes rolling back in his head at the taste. Scooping up the box, he turned and started making his way home.

Jumping down the manhole, he thought about leaving two slices left: one for Leo and one for Donnie. Raph would be so mad when he didn't get one. Mikey gigged a little bit, but a sudden wave of dizziness overwhelmed him. His stomach rumbled again, but this time it wasn't from hunger. He felt... weird. He staggered and reached out a hand for the wall, fumbling for his shell cell. "Dude," he groaned. "So not cool." Mikey fell to his knees and slumped over, passed out in the tunnels.

Raph had just finished his patrols and was looking for his brothers. He hopped to the sewer and looked around before he saw the slumped shape of his brother next to a half-eaten pizza.

"Mikey!" Raph sprinted over to him and turned him over, holding a hand in front of his beak to make sure he was still breathing. Mikey let out a soft snore, and Raph's nervousness immediately dissolved into irritation. "You have got to be kidding me." He rolled his eyes and hauled Mikey over his shoulder, grimacing. _Man, this kid needs to lose some weight_ , he moaned to himself, staggering a bit. Carefully bending down again, he scooped up the pizza box and headed on his way, complaining under his breath about how Mikey would eat himself stuffed and then fall asleep literally everywhere. He complained about it all the way back to the lair.

Unceremoniously, he dumped Mikey on his bed, in the most uncomfortable position hanging off ever. Rolling his eyes one last time, he headed to the living room and settled onto the couch, carrying the pizza box with him. He turned the TV on and shoved a slice in his mouth, chewing with his mouth open unabashedly.

By the time Leo and Donnie walked in, Raph was snoring loudly on the couch. Leo rolled his eyes and covered him with a blanket, offering the box to Donnie.

"Don't mind if I do," Donnie said, grabbing a piece. Leo snagged the last one, and after checking to make sure Mikey made it home too, headed off to the dojo. Donnie had disappeared into his lair almost immediately, mumbling all the way about some experiment he wanted to get back to. After performing some basic katas, he felt the same dizziness Mikey had before and fell, still clutching one of his swords. Donnie collapsed about the same time in his chair, goggles pushed on the top of his head.

Splinter had gone to bed hours ago, going to bed early and waking early. But if he had been awake, he would have seen an eerie flash of gold lights blaze for a only moment in the dojo and fade. In the morning, Splinter awoke early and went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. His ears twitched warily; something wasn't right. He could feel it. Temporarily, he ignored it as he walked down the hallway, listening to loud and obnoxious snoring coming from the living room.

"Ah, Raphael," he sighed. He opened the door gently so as to not wake him. But when he walked in, he jerked to a stop, hands immediately going for his weapons. He snarled, ears flattening back against his head, and he lunged forward to attack.

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 **What do you think Splinter saw? R &R. **


	2. Chapter 2 - Splinter's Surprise

**Since I'm transcribing this pretty much word for word from when I wrote it 6 years ago, I'm also leaving chapter length as it is. Which means... get ready for a lot of incredibly short chapters!**

 **Enjoy.**

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Splinter let out a sharp cry as he lunged. The figure on the couch awoke to a giant mutant rat about to kill him.

"Oh, SHELL!" Raph swore, ducking and letting Splinter crash into the couch cushions. He rolled back, and in less than a moment he had his Sai in his hands, backed up into a defensive position. "Whoa! What's going on?"

"You!" Splinter hissed, ears flattened against his head. "What are you doing in my home? What have you done to my sons? You wear Raphael's bandana. I suppose you took it for a token of war; Raphael would never have allowed it!" Splinter circled Raph, eyes narrowed into slits. He pointed his cane at Raph's chest. Suddenly, he leaped forward again.

Raph flipped over him, reflecting the cane away with a sharp clang, and his irritation was growing. He was no stranger to being woken abruptly for training, but this was different. What the shell was going on? Splinter barked something at him in Japanese, and Raph gritted his teeth.

"Look," he said, trying his best to not let his temper boil over in front of Splinter. "Is this a test? This was totally a test. Can we be done with this now?" He glanced at the cracked clock on the wall and sighed. "It's too early for this crap," he muttered under his breath, low enough for Splinter not to hear him.

Splinter's chest was heaving, and he narrowed his eyes again. He lowered his cane slightly, looking more confused than angry at this point. Something was too familiar about this stranger. "Look at me," he commanded, and Raph, clenching his jaw tightly, lowered his Sai and stared at him straight on.

Splinter's eyes widened, and his ears twitched. He would recognize that frustrated green gaze anywhere. "Raphael," he gasped, immediately lowering his cane all the way. Relieved, Raph shoved his Sai in his belt. "What happened?"

"What do you mean, 'What happened?'" Raph rolled his eyes. "I woke up this morning to you trying to kill me. I totally passed the test though, right? Did Leo?" When he growled, his red bandana slipped into his eyes. _Funny_ , he thought. _It's never been loose before._ He pushed it back up and finished rubbing sleep from his eyes. Splinter was still watching him, eyes wide in shock.

He lowered his hand, but instead of seeing his familiar green, a deep, tan color winked back. "Holy sh-!" He cut himself off before Splinter could chastise him and ran to the bathroom, heart in his throat. He could hear Splinter running behind him, and his gaze blurred as he looked in the mirror.

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 **R &R. (Also, pray for me... :( I got finals next week!) **


	3. Chapter 3 - Mikey and Raph

**Congrats to all of you who guessed human AU! And thanks to everyone who has reviewed; I hope you're enjoying this so far. I'm having fun typing this up, much more than writing the essay I should be working on instead tbh.**

 **Enjoy.**

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 _Well_ , Raph thought, utterly at a loss. _At least I still have my eyes._ He made a face in the mirror, and the human looking back mimicked him. "What the shell happened to me?" Raph stuck out his tongue, eyes wide and horrified. "How did this happen?"

Splinter stood in the doorway, looking almost as shocked as Raph. "I do not know, my son." He rested a paw on Raph's shoulder. "We will figure this out."

Raph sneered at his newfound reflection. Full pink lips, a tanned face, dark, wavy hair. But his eyes - still the same electrifying green. He wasn't wearing any clothes besides his bandana and weapons belt, and he traced a finger down the lightning bolt scar that spread jagged across his chest. All his scars were in the same places, and he flexed, watching pleased as his muscles rippled back in the mirror.

"Yup," he said, satisfied. He winked at himself. "Still got it." Splinter rolled his eyes.

"Hey," a sleepy voice yawned, and Raph and Splinter turned to look at another human rubbing his eyes. Raph's yell of surprise had woken up a very sleepy Mikey, or at least someone wearing his bandana. "What's the big idea?" He finished rubbing his eyes and blinked, jaw dropping when he looked at Raph. "No way! Who are you?"

Raph rolled his eyes and grabbed Mikey by the shoulder, ignoring his protests and dragging him in front of the mirror. He laughed; human or not, he loved messing with Mikey.

Mikey blinked, only to find his blue eyes blinking back in a human face. "Whoa!" he gasped, immediately pushing Raph out of the way and stepping up to press his nose against the mirror. He began inspecting every detail of his new face, pouring over each freckle dusting his cheeks. He tugged on a strand of curly blonde hair, eyes lighting up with the curl bounced.

"Dude, this is totally a dream. Pinch me!"

Raph's face broke into an evil grin. "Gladly!" He pinched his bicep hard, and Mikey swatted his hand away with a howl of pain.

"Raphael," Splinter said warningly. Raph muttered an apology, crossing his arms.

"Okay, so not a dream," Mikey said, rubbing his arm. He tilted his head to the side, still watching his reflection. "Have you seen Leo and Donnie yet? Are they like this, too?" Raph's face lit up, and Splinter's ears twitched. "Please, please, please can we go wake them up?" He gave Splinter his best puppy dog eyes, and Raph bounced eagerly on his heels, just as excited.

Splinter sighed. "Go wake them," he said. "Then meet me in the dojo." He shook his head, stroking his beard. "I need a cup of tea," he muttered, heading off to the kitchen and shaking his head further.

"Yes!" Mikey cheered, and he and Raph high-fived. They grinned at each other. This was going to be good!

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 **R &R. **


	4. Chapter 4 - Donnie

**I know it's been a couple of weeks, but I am officially done with school! Woohoo! Also, any update on the stealthy stories competition?**

 **Enjoy.**

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"So... who do you want to surprise first?" Mikey grinned devilishly at Raph, reaching back to tighten his bandana.

Raph snickered, just as evil of a grin reflecting back on his face. "Let's save our Fearless Leader for last. Donnie it is!" Mikey nodded, and they crept to his lab, figuring that would be a better place to start than Donnie's actual bedroom. Waving a hand, Mikey sneakily opened the door, and they slunk into the dark.

It took a moment for their eyes to adjust, but the first thing Raph saw was a head full of red hair, and Donnie sprawled and drooling over his laptop. Raph let out a low whistle.

"Shell, look at his hair. It's blinding," Raph sneered.

Mikey giggled. "Hey, it looks like April's!" Immediately, Raph and Mikey turned and met each other's gazes, busting into quiet fits of laughter. Mikey shoved his palm in his mouth, shoulders heaving.

"Oh man, that is just too good," Raph said, wiping away a tear. He jostled Mikey's shoulder. "You scare him. I wanna do Leo."

Mikey shrugged. That was fine by him; he'd rather face Donnie's wrath than Leo's. He tiptoed up next to Donnie's desk and bent down close next to his ear. "Wake up, sleepy-shell!" he crooned.

Donnie slowly lifted his head and blinked sleep from his eyes. He turned and let out a yelp at seeing an unfamiliar human up close and personal.

Mikey bent closer, nose to nose, and beamed. "Hi," he said. Donnie yelled again, turning and seeing Raph standing, arms crossed. He fumbled around, feeling for his Bo staff but coming up empty. He was trapped. He turned and scanned his desk, grabbing a nasty looking piece of metal and gripping it tightly.

"Who are you?" he said, voice hard, raising the makeshift weapon up higher. He narrowed his eyes, frowning when the purple slipped to cover his vision.

"Oh!" Raph said sarcastically. "I'm so scared."

"Relax, Donnie," Mikey said, holding up his hands and stepping back, eyeing the metal warily.

"How do you know my name?" Donnie said, eyes narrowed. He stood up, stepping up closer to Mikey. Mikey gulped and backtracked again.

"Donnie, bro, come on," Mikey chuckled nervously. "It's me! Mikey. You know, your funniest and coolest brother."

"Oh yeah?" Donnie said. "Prove it!"

"You're in love with April O'Neil?" Mikey said hesitantly, shrugging his shoulders.

Donnie blinked and lowered the metal, eyes flicking back and forth over Mikey's new features. "It is you," he breathed. "What? But... this doesn't make sense."

Raph rolled his eyes. "Yeah, don't ask how, Sherlock, we don't know how it happened either." Donnie's fascinated gaze turned to Raph, and then down to his own new hands and arms.

"This is impossible!" Donnie exclaimed, excitedly rushing past Raph to go find a mirror. He threw a bunch of papers over his shoulder and found what he was looking for, staring at his reflection greedily. Straight red hair, glossy and floppy. He grinned, and the gap between his teeth was still there. "Wow! Where's Leo?"

Raph shrugged. "Haven't woken him up yet," he said impatiently. "Come on."

"Oh! Can I wake him?" Donnie pleaded, falling quiet with one sharp look from Raph. He fell in step with Mikey on the way to Leo's room.

"Yeah," Mikey said grumpily. "That's why I had to wake you up."

"Gee," Donnie said sarcastically. "Thanks." Hearing a noise in the kitchen, Donnie nudged him in the side. "What about Splinter? Is he human again, too?"

"Nope," Mikey said quietly.

"Oh." Donnie was quiet for a moment. "You think he's upset?"

Mikey gave him a look as they approached Leo's room. "Dude, I just woke up!"

"Shhh!" Raph hissed, glaring at them as he opened the door. He stuck his head inside and then slammed the door. "He isn't even here!"

Donnie laughed. "Check the dojo!"

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 **R &R! **


	5. Chapter 5 - Leo

**I started work this week, and whew, am I exhausted. Enjoy!**

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The turtles tiptoed from Leo's room and to the dojo, Raph in the lead. Raph stuck his head inside. "Hey, he is in here!" Raph whispered over his shoulder to Donnie, evil grin lighting up his face. "Fearless, let's have some fun!" The grin grew, and Donnie gulped, sending up a silent prayer for his oldest brother.

Raph approached a sleeping Leo, curled up in a ball on the floor. Blue bandana tails mixed with silky straight brown hair, and a Katana clutched in one of his hands. The other one lay forgotten on the floor, and Raph picked it up, swinging it absentmindedly. He considered it for a moment, then knocked the handle on Leo's head rapidly.

"That... was underwhelming," Donnie said. Mikey nodded in agreement. They snuck in and stood forgotten in a corner.

Leo jumped up immediately, holding his other sword in a defensive position. His face paled where he saw a human smirking at him, holding his own sword against him.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Leo asked bravely, voice deeper and raspier than usual.

Mikey giggled in the background. "Dude, he's trying to sound like Captain Ryan!" He and Donnie burst into peals of laughter, and even Raph snorted. Leo's cheeks flamed.

"it's one thing to come in to my house," Leo said, annoyed. "It's another to mock _Space Heroes_ in front of me! Only my brothers can do that!" He lunged at Raph, who brought the sword up to parry. Sparks flew, and Raph gritted his teeth.

"Shell-fer-brains," Raph said, rolling his eyes. "Who do you think we are?"

Leo paused. "A dull, confused human who accidentally ended up in here?" Raph shrieked in fury, and brought down the sword over his head, knocking the hilt out of Leo's hands. He stood over him, chest heaving, and pointed the edge to his chest. Donnie and Mikey watched in shocked surprise.

"Raphael!" Splinter's voice rang out from the dojo entrance. "Get off of Leonardo!"

Raph threw the sword down at Leo's feet. "But Sensei," he whined. "He started it!"

"Sensei!" Leo jumped up, holding his second sword tenderly. "Who are these people? What are they doing in our home?" He eyed Raph, who was now twirling his Sai and smirking at him. "He attacked me! Where is Raph?" His head swung around to Donnie and Mikey, taking in their bandanas, and his eyes grew wide. "They killed them!"

"Leonardo, calm down!" Splinter said with a touch of weariness, having already ran through this conversation earlier. "I take it you haven't seen yourself yet?" He handed Leo an old, rusty handheld mirror.

Leo's girly screams echoed through the sewers.

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 **Finally! All the boys know. R &R! **


	6. Chapter 6 - Mikey, This is Your Fault!

**Still looking for a beta for the 2k3 series if anybody knows where to find one!** **Enjoy.**

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After Leo calmed down enough, Splinter had them all kneel on the mat in front of them. Raph kept snickering at Leo and his reaction, to which he was largely ignored by Leo with faint red cheeks. Splinter watched his sons in front of him, unnerved that they were not, in fact, the turtles he had raised and trained, but still his sons regardless. He marveled at their appearances, each showing traits from before, but still so unlike themselves it was strange.

"Yame," he said, getting their attention. Mikey stopped fidgeting, and Raph quieted and looked up, still the edges of a smirk on his face. "How did this second mutation occur?"

"Who knows?" Raph said. "But now we're stuck like this!" He held up his hands. "I can't work them right with five fingers! I can't hold my Sai," he complained, and Donnie rolled his eyes.

"Maybe not," Donnie said. "If we figure out what caused this change, I might can make an antidote."

"What did everybody do last night?" Leo asked. "Did anything strange happen on patrol last night?"

Everyone shook their heads, except for Mikey. "I was patrolling and found a full pizza, just sitting in the trash. I don't know why the humans waste so much," he complained, not seeing the looks of horror on his brothers' faces, "so I ate it and then passed out. You know, I don't even know how I made it home last night..."

"Ugh, gross!" Leo said, wrinkling up his nose.

Raph had a disgusted look on his face. "You just took a random pizza? Out of the trash?"

Mikey shrugged, looking defensive. "We've eaten out of the trash before. Right, Sensei?" Splinter just flicked his tail, avoiding their gazes.

Donnie sighed, rubbing his eyes. "Mikey, you don't just trust random pizzas! We all ate that!" He paused for a moment, thinking, and then his eyes lit up. "We all ate that," he repeated softly. "Sensei, did you eat any?" Splinter shook his head. "That was it! Whatever turned us this way was on the pizza!"

Raph turned and glared at Mikey. "You did this to us!" he hissed.

"Whoa," Mikey said, holding up his hands defensively. "In my defense, I didn't know it was contaminated!"

As Raph and Mikey began to bicker, Leo looked over at Donnie. "Can you run some tests on the pizza box? I'm sure it's in the trash. Maybe we can find out what was in it that way?"

Donnie groaned. "I mean, yeah, I can do it, but do you know just how many pizza boxes are in the trash? It'll take us forever to figure out which one it is!"

"We shall all help you look," Splinter said. Donnie still didn't look fully appeased, but he nodded. "Until then, you four need to stay in the lair." He was met with four angry cries.

"But we're human now!" Raph said. "We fit in!"

"I wanna go to the skatepark," Mikey said, a dreamy look in his eyes.

"He's right," Donnie said, still not looking happy. "We don't know if it will wear off or not. We don't want Mikey turning back in the middle of a trick."

"Dude, awesome!"

Splinter nodded. "It is not for forever, Raphael," he said, watching his son's irritation flick across his face. "Now, we need to-"

"I'm cold," Mikey complained. "Can I have some clothes?"

With a sudden start, the others realized just what that meant, and angry and embarrassed shrieks echoed throughout the lair. Each of the boys, except for Mikey, hunched in on themselves, trying to cover their new bodies as much as possible. It was never something they had to worry about while turtles, just a new problem in a new world. Splinter retrieved some of his robes, and though they draped the ground on all but Donnie, they were satisfied.

"It's so light without a shell," Mikey whined. "I don't like it."

"We can ask April to bring us some stuff that'll actually fit later," Donnie said brightly. His eyes lit up. "I wonder what she'll say when she sees us like this!"

Raph rolled his eyes. "Something tells me you're still not her-"

He was cut off by someone moving around in the lair outside of the dojo. "Hellooo? Anybody home?"

"Speak of the devil," Raph said, watching as Donnie's eyes grew huge.

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 **R &R! **


	7. Chapter 7 - April

"It's April!"

"We can't let her see us like this!"

Looking at the stricken faces of his sons, Master Splinter sighed. "I will go out there to speak to Ms. O'Neil," he said. He walked to the door and stuck his head outside. He saw her wandering around the den, looking confused, and he slipped out, letting the door crack behind him. There were sounds of a slight tussle, and he knew his sons were trying to eavesdrop from the other side.

April noticed him come out of the dojo, and her face relaxed. She bounded over to him and bowed. "Hey, Master Splinter. I just came down to hang out for my last free day."

"Last free day?" he repeated, raising an eyebrow.

April waved her hand dismissively and giggled. "Oh, I was just being dramatic. Tomorrow is the first day of school. I'm just ready to kinda get into a routine again, see my friends. That sorta thing." He nodded, and she looked over his shoulder, towards the dojo. "Where are the guys? I couldn't find them anywhere."

Splinter's ears twitched. "Ah, they are... out."

April noticed his nervousness, and she narrowed her eyes a little. "Are they sick?"

Splinter's tail twitched. "No, not sick."

April nodded, looking a little confused. "Well, that's good I guess. Are they hurt then? How's Donnie? I even checked his lab."

Behind the door, Donnie blushed and turned to his brothers, grinning widely. "She asked how I was doing! Me!" Raph rolled his eyes and smacked him on the back of the head.

"Shh!" Leo hissed, holding a finger to his mouth. "She'll hear us!"

April cocked her ear to the side. "What was that?"

Splinter heard the turtles' interaction and closed his eyes, wondering why he hadn't had four quiet, able-to-listen girls instead. "I must've left the kettle on," he said smoothly, putting a hand on her shoulder to try and herd her away to the kitchen. "Come, I will make you a cup."

"Thanks, but-" she ducked under his arm and brushed past him, pushing the door to the dojo open with all her strength. Four very surprised boys went stumbling back. As they landed in a pile, April began cracking up. Her giggles turned into a gasp as they started sitting up, rubbing their heads and glaring at her.

"Who are you?" she asked, hands on her hips. Four very surprised teenage boys stared back at a very shocked, very annoyed teenage girl. "What have you all done to my friends?" She could feel Master Splinter come and stand behind her, and she puffed out her chest, knowing they were about to get it.

"Aww, Sensei," the blonde one whined. "I thought you said you weren't going to let her in! I was going to do my hair first."

"Shut up, shell-fer-brains," another one said, pushing him in the shoulder. "You don't even know what to do with hair!"

The third one rolled his eyes, and the fourth looked at her, beaming with a huge gap-toothed grin.

"Hi, April!" he said. "Excellent weather we're having, isn't it?" She took in his smile, the familiar red-brown eyes, and her eyes grew wide.

" _Donnie?!_ "

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 **R &R! **


	8. Chapter 8 - Making a Plan

" _Donnie?!_ "

Donnie grinned sheepishly, awkwardly folding his hands behind his back. "Hi, April," he said again, this time more shyly.

April blinked at him, eyes huge. "It is you!" She ran up and threw her arms around his neck. He was too shocked to do anything but stand there, and Mikey shoved him away from April.

"And here's your one and only Mikey!" he cheered, flashing her his best grin. She laughed and hugged him, too, a shocked smile on her face.

"What happened to you guys?" she asked, turning and looking over Leo and Raph next. "You're humans now," she said in wonder.

"Ugh, I know," Raph mumbled. "What a pity."

April shot him a look and put her hands on her hips. "Hey, watch it, real human here!" He rolled his eyes at her.

"We're not sure what happened," Donnie started to say, but Mikey cut him off with a laugh.

"He thinks it's from a pizza we ate!" Mikey chirped. Donnie glared at him when April wasn't looking.

April raised an eyebrow, exchanging a look with Master Splinter behind her. "I always knew you guys ate too much pizza," she said, and Mikey gasped, offended. She ignored him. "But this is great! We can go out in public together without hiding!" The boys exchanged cautious looks, remembering the conversation from earlier.

"I don't think we're quite ready for that yet," Leo said hesitantly. "We don't even have any clothes." April looked a little bummed and tapped on her arm, obviously trying to think.

Raph looked down at the robe and snorted. "Yeah, I'm not going out in this," he said, quickly giving Master Splinter an apologetic grin when he cleared his throat.

April perked back up. "I know! I can teach you guys everything you need to know about being human!" she said, sounding incredibly excited. Mikey and Donnie exchanged excited looks; Raph and Leo, however, not so much. "I think I can bring some of my dad's old clothes down for you, just until we can actually get you some stuff that fits. We can go thrift store shopping."

Mikey jumped up and down, pulling on Leo's arm. "I want a fur coat!" he exclaimed. "I'm going to dress just like Macklemore!"

Splinter looked horrified at that mental image.

"Sensei, can we go?" Leo asked politely, drawing attention back to their Sensei. Splinter stroked his beard, studying the excited looks on his sons' faces. Mikey leaned on Leo's shoulder, doing his best puppy dog eyes, and Splinter sighed, not having the heart to turn him down.

He nodded. "You may go," he said, and the boys cheered. "But," he said, holding up a hand, and everyone froze, "not until April brings you some clothes. I do not want my robes being dragged all over New York."

"Deal!" April explained. "Give me a couple minutes, guys; I'll be back in no time!" She turned and dashed off, giving the boys one final look over before doing so.

"Awesome!" Mikey high-fived Donnie. The boys excitedly chattered and swarmed out into the living room, forgetting all about Splinter in their excitement to compare each others' reflections.

Splinter watched, trying to push down a sprout of jealousy as they went.

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 **Poor Splinter. R &R! **


	9. Chapter 9 - New Look: Traffic Cones

It wasn't long until April ran back into the lair, two stuffed duffle bags hanging over her shoulders.

"Here," she panted, throwing them down in the couches. "Have at it." The boys gathered around, chattering and pushing each other out of the way. She hastily ducked into the kitchen, covering her eyes when Mikey made to start stripping off his robe.

Mikey grabbed one of the duffle backs and turned it over, dumping all of the clothes out at once. Donnie did the same with the other, and they stared wide-eyed at the pile before them.

"Does denim on denim go together?" Leo asked, holding up some jeans and a jacket, looking over at Raph with wide eyes. Raph shrugged, holding up a bright red shirt and lime green shorts. Donnie dug around in the pile, trying to find something desperately that would accommodate his height.

"Uh, April?" Mikey yelled over his shoulder. "We need your help!"

"Only if you put your robe back on!" she yelled back, and Raph smacked the back of his head.

"Hurry up!"

"Ow, okay, okay." Mikey shrugged the robe back on, and April hesitantly walked back out. "We never wore clothes before," Mikey whined as she walked up. "What's the difference?"

April's cheeks flushed. "Big difference," she said, tone of voice obviously wanting him to drop it. She refused to make eye contact and dove into the pile. She eyed Leo still clutching the denim jacket and jeans and made a face. "No way," she said, pointing back at the pile. "Put that down."

"But I like it," Leo all but whined, and it made April question for a moment if these boys were really the turtles she'd known. "It matches my mask."

April blinked, frowning a little. "Wait, you guys know you can't wear your masks out, right?"

Leo's mouth dropped, and even Raph looked a little spooked. "But we will be naked then!" Mikey said, eyes wide, and April bit her lip.

"Humans don't do that. You'll look like you're in a gang or something." she said. The boys exchanged looks, and April sighed, turning back to the pile. Leo sadly put his clothes back down in the pile. April caught a glimpse of a bright orange shirt and grinned. "Here, Mikey," she said, tossing it to him with a pair of jeans.

Mikey's eyes lit up. "Dude, awesome!" He started to take off his robe again, and April clamped a hand over her eyes.

"Mikey!" Donnie hissed.

Mikey rolled his eyes. "Oh, right," he said, and he ran off to go change in his room.

April slowly lowered her hand again and sighed. She grabbed the pair of dark jeans Leo was looking at and gave him a much lighter blue shirt. "Here," she said. "Don't do denim on denim," she warned, and Leo took them and nodded, eyes wide.

He walked to his room just as Mikey was running back. "Ta-da!" he beamed, waving his hands in front of him. He hiked up his pants. They were obviously too big and baggy, but he didn't let that temper his excitement.

"You look like a traffic cone," Raph scoffed, and some of Mikey's enthusiasm wilted.

"I like it," April said, shooting Raph a glare. Raph rolled his eyes, but Mikey perked back up. "Go try on some of the shoes I brought now to see which ones fit." Mikey scampered over to the pile and sat down, pulling out a ratty pair of tennis shoes to try.

"What about me?" Donnie said hopefully. April scrutinized him for a second and handed him a pair of khaki pants with a long purple button down shirt. He grinned at her and ran off, passing a satisfied looking Leo on his way to look at shoes.

Raph held out the red shirt he'd picked up earlier, and April nodded. It was sleeveless, she noticed with a slight sense of amusement. She handed him a pair of black jeans, and Raph surveyed them, looking pleased. He headed off, and she worked to shove the unused clothes back into her bag. She'd put them back in her dad's closet later.

"That suits you, Donnie," she heard Leo say approvingly, and she turned around, watching Donnie walk out of his lab with a wide grin on his face. His pants were too short, and only went to mid-calf, and she fought back a laugh. She gave him a thumbs up instead, and his cheeks flushed.

Raph came out of his room next, looking far too pleased with himself. Mikey's jaw dropped, and he pointed a finger at Raph. "No fair!" he whined. "How come he gets to show off his muscles?"

"'Cuz I've got the biggest," Raph boasted, and he snatched the ratty tennis shoes out of Mikey's lap to try on. He flexed in front of Mikey, smirking, and Leo rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry, Mikey," Donnie said, patting his brother on the shoulder. "It's only because he's so hot-tempered he'd burn up in anything longer." Leo threw his head back and laughed, and Raph threw a shoe at him. April fought back a giggle at the annoyed look on Raph's face.

"Now the masks," April said. Slowly, the boys each pulled off their masks, rubbing their eyes and looking over at April hesitantly. She groaned. "Oh, don't give me that look."

"April is right," Splinter said, and his sudden presence made April jump and turn around. "I did not wear a mask while human. You boys look... very good."

 _I guess 'very good' is one way to describe it_ , April thought to herself. None of the clothes really fit, and most of it only passably matched, but it would have to do until they got clothes of their own. She gave them all a thumbs up, and the boys beamed, high-fiving each other and grinning.

"We look great!" Mikey said, jumping up. He'd found a pair of brightly colored rain boots that were too big on him but loved them anyway. April tried not to grimace. Yeah, clothes shopping was definitely going to be the first thing they did. "Can we go now?"

April looked at Splinter. "You may," he said, and the rest of them jumped up, grinning widely and immediately running off towards the exit. His ears fell a little, and April patted him on the arm.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of them," she said reassuringly. "Don't wait up!" She turned and ran after them, and Splinter was left alone again.

* * *

 **R &R!**


	10. Chapter 10 - Topside

**Yup, super short chapter. Please give me feedback, guys!**

 **Enjoy.**

* * *

April poke her head out of the manhole. When she saw no one coming, she pulled herself out and motioned for the boys to follow. An excited grin tugged at the corners of her lips.

"Are you guys ready?" she asked, feeling an odd mix of nerves and anticipation climb up her spine. She shivered, practically bouncing up and down from the excitement.

"Yeah!" Donnie and Mikey cheered, equally excited grins on their faces. Mikey shaded his eyes from the sun, none of them used to being topside during the day.

"Lead the way, April," Leo said, offering a hand to Raph to finish tugging him out of the sewers. Raph muttered something under his breath, dusting off caked mud from his jeans.

April hesitated for a moment. "I told Master Splinter I would take you guys to get some clothes first," she said, laughing a little, "but I think I have a better place to go first!" It had taken her a while to think of the perfect place, but she had finally thought of one. She started walking, curving out of the alley.

"Speaking of Splinter," Mikey mumbled to Raph. "Did you hang up his robe?"

"No!" Raph paused for a moment and leaned back closer to Mikey. "Did you?"

"Nope! He's so going to kill us!"

Leo ignored his brothers. He made to follow April, but he hesitated before stepping out of the sanctuary of the alley. There were so many people, all chattering and bustling about, and it made every instinct he had scream in his head. His brothers hesitated behind him, watching the people with wide eyes.

"Guys?" April asked, having realized nobody was following her. "You coming?"

Leo exchanged a look with Donnie, took a deep breath, and took a step out onto the sidewalk. He was almost immediately swept away by the crowd, and he caught a glimpse of the panic on Raph's face as he got caught up.

"Try to stay together!" April called out, and she pushed her way back through the crowd to get next to Leo. "Are you good?" she whispered to him, eyes concerned.

"This is amazing," he said, trying to reassure her with a grin. April saw right through him, with his slightly too-big grin and rigid movements.

"We can go back-"

"No!" Leo interrupted, and April blinked, taken aback. "No," he said more calmly. "Look how much fun Mikey's having." They both turned to look back at Mikey, who was walking with wide eyes and his mouth hanging open. He was grinning wildly, and clutching Raph's sleeve so as to not get lost. Even Donnie had a starstruck look about him as he took in the people. "I can do this for them," he said. It just might take all of his willpower to fight his instincts, and Raph looked grimly like he was thinking the same thing.

Donnie pushed his way to get closer to Leo and April. "Where are we going first?" he asked excitedly, and Mikey dragged Raph up to be able to hear.

"Well," April said, looking at them mischievously. "How does Times Square sound?"


	11. Chapter 11 - Times Square

**Anybody on Tumblr? I'd love to get into the TMNT fandom on there.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"This is awesome!"

Mikey stood smack dab in the center of Times Square, seemingly oblivious to the people trying to move around him. He spun around in a circle, arms open wide until he got dizzy and fell into Raph. Raph had seemingly gotten over his aversion to the people and was standing, equally starry-eyed, next to him. When his view was disturbed, he growled and made a fist.

"No arguing!" April scolded, giving Raph a glare. "Look, I got you each a camera." It was disposable, the type Splinter had used when they were little. She passed them out, Leo taking his with a funny expression on his face. Donnie looked ecstatic.

"April, you didn't have to," Leo whispered to her, pulling her aside briefly when she finished handing them out. "We do have some money stashed away; I feel bad about all this money you're spending on us, especially if it's temporary."

"Leo, don't worry about it!" she said, patting him on the arm. "I wanted to do this! You guys are my friends. Besides, this is fun!" He mumbled his gratitude again, looking at her with earnest eyes, and she beamed at him.

"Whoa, April! You sure know how to show a guy a good time!" Mikey said, immediately holding it up to his face. He started taking pictures of everything: people, buildings, advertisements. He even got one of Raph glaring at him when the flash went off in his eyes. "Take my picture with that giant M&M over there!" He immediately started sprinting towards the M&M store.

"Mikey!" Donnie yelled. "Wait up!" The others started to make their way through the crowd after him, coming up on Mikey bouncing impatiently next to the statue. April giggled at his enthusiasm.

"What took you guys so long?" he whined, passing April his camera. She fumbled with it for a minute and happily obliged, taking several of Mikey pretending to take a bite out of it. He ducked inside, eyes growing wide at all of the candy. "This is the best place ever! Leo, can we buy some?"

"No!" Raph said, eyes wide and steering Mikey away from the huge trays.

"I'm sorry, are you Leo? Because I asked Leo! I want candy!" A tussle resulted, with Raph giving Mikey a noogie.

"Taking Mikey here was a bad idea," Leo whispered to Donnie as they watched their brothers argue. Donnie wholeheartedly agreed.

"Come on, guys," April said, looking a little embarrassed. "The Hershey store is across the street." The same thing resulted in the other candy store, and Donnie facepalmed. Leo scrounged together enough change to buy Mikey a candy bar. He gnawed on it blissfully as they walked back out, letting April lead them to their next destination.

As they walked out, someone bumped into Donnie hard and almost made him fall over, not yet completely used to the new balance of his human body. Leo caught Donnie before he could completely fall.

"Oops, sorry, I wasn't paying attention," Donnie said, smiling sheepishly, and a boy that looked to be their age whirled around.

"Watch where you're going next time!" he snapped, knocking Donnie's shoulder again. "And stay out of my way!" Leo and Donnie stumbled back, eyes wide in shock.

Raph, on the other hand, was not so surprised, and he clenched his fist. "Hey!" he yelled. "Back off, kid." He cracked his knuckles menacingly and lunged, but Mikey grabbed his arm and pulled him back. The kid's eyes widened, and he disappeared into the crowd without another peep.

"He's not worth it, Raph," Leo whispered. Raph let out a deep breath and nodded, fire still gleaming in his eyes.

 _That guy won't be messing with us again_ , he thought to himself with satisfaction.

Donnie rolled his eyes. Typical Raph.

April dragged them to Broadway next, with Mikey taking millions of pictures of the street signs. He had chocolate smeared all over his face, and was already shaking from excess sugar. After window-shopping some more, he began to complain about being starving.

"You know, I could eat, too," Donnie said, patting his stomach. "We didn't eat breakfast this morning, did we?"

"At least you had that candy bar," Raph snapped to Mikey. "Think about how the rest of us feel!"

April's stomach growled too. "What do you guys want?"

The four of them grinned, wide smiles that meant she was missing something.

"... What?" she asked.

"April, if you ever ask us that, just know the answer will always be pizza," Leo said to her, still smiling.

"PIZZA!" Mikey screamed, sugar rush in full effect. A few people walking by them gave him funny looks.

"Right, right," April said, smacking herself on the forehead for forgetting the obvious. Well, so much for getting them to try something new. "I know just the place!"

* * *

 **R &R! **


	12. Chapter 12 - Pizza & Pictures!

April led them to a small but crowded pizza restaurant called Picka-Pecka Pizza. Apparently, or so she explained, some boy who went to her school was super rich because his father owned the chain, and all of his classmates got free pizza with proof of attendance. She ordered, waving her ID card in front of the cashier, and successfully scored the bunch of them free food. They sat at a little table in the corner of the restaurant and people-watched until their food came out.

"This ain't a pizza," Raph sneered, looking at his plate. "It's not even the size of my hand!" April rolled her eyes, and Mikey didn't listen, too busy wolfing it down. Donny tried to subtly take a picture of his pizza without Raph seeing, not really wanting to be mocked.

"Yeah, but it's free," Leo said patiently, picking up a slice, "which makes it better." He bit into it and immediately flared his nostrils. "But Raph is right, this isn't real pizza." Raph gave him a satisfied smile, pleased at Leo taking his side for once.

"What do you know about real pizza?" Donnie said skeptically, slipping his camera back into his pocket. "We ate our first pizza off the street. Shell, we haven't even been eating it for long."

"You guys are weird; I thought it was great!" Mikey said. He belched, loudly, and Donnie plugged his nose, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Thank you, Mikey," April said pointedly. "It's nice to know one of you has manners." Raph snorted, and Leo looked affronted that out of all of them, _Mikey_ was the one she thought was the most polite. Donnie widened his eyes and hastily took another bite when he knew April was looking, trying to be included in the grateful bunch.

Trying to clear the sudden tension, Leo cleared his throat and pulled out his camera. "Hey, April, can you take some pictures for us? I want to remember everyone human." He flashed her his most winning smile and slid the camera over to her. "I'm sure your photography skills are better than mine."

April beamed, flattered, and took several pictures of Leo, Donnie, and Mikey smiling. Mikey had sauce on his face in most of them until Donnie made him wipe it off.

"Come on, Raph," April said, holding the camera up to her eyes. "It's your turn." He grunted a response, eyes flashing dangerously.

"Poor baby doesn't like getting his picture taken," Mikey cooed, and Raph glared.

April wheedled for a little bit, and seeing it was futile, just took some of him glaring at Mikey. "Party pooper," she said, childishly sticking out her tongue. Raph returned the gesture. She handed the camera back over to Leo.

"I can't wait to develop these," Mikey said happily, waving around his own camera. "I wish I could see them now." He started to take pictures, caught up in the excitement. "Donnie, smile!"

Donnie smiled, not even trying to make it look like a real one, and April photobombed, grinning widely with a peace sign. Donnie looked at her, surprised, and turned back to Mikey's camera, a genuine smile on his face. Soon, she and Mikey were taking lots of funny pictures, complete with April telling Mikey which poses were popular now, and laughing with Leo and Donnie as Mikey did his best to imitate her.

"Come on, Leo," Mikey whined. "Do a peace sign or something! Don't be so boring." Leo's grin flickered hesitantly, but he flashed Mikey a peace sign, blinking and shaking his head after the flash went off. "Awesome! Raph, it's your turn!"

"No way," Raph said, crossing his arms.

"Pleaseeee?" April asked, sticking out her lower lip. "Come on, at least do a duck face."

"A what?" He looked at her like she was crazy, and she demonstrated.

Raph looked like he had lost all faith in humanity, but sighing as if this was some great feat, he pursed out his lips for no more than two seconds.

"Oh no! Raph, I didn't get it - it's blurry. Do it again!" Mikey whined.

Raph cackled. "You snooze, you lose!" He refused to do it again, claiming that that was it.

Leo hid a smile behind his hand. He knew he'd gotten the picture, and Raph hadn't even seen him take it. He grinned inwardly, knowing this would be good to blackmail Raph with later. Maybe he could slip it to Dr. Prankenstein to do some real damage...

"What are you smiling at?" Donnie asked him, looking at him like he had a few screws loose.

"Huh? Oh, nothing," Leo said. Donnie looked at him suspiciously but dropped the subject, turning his focus back on April. Leo refrained from rolling his eyes. Typical Donnie.

A couple of the tables around them had been watching the picture shenanigans with varying levels of wariness, but one smiling grandmother asked if they wanted her to take a group picture. Mikey handed over her camera and grinned widely, throwing an arm around Donnie's neck. Even Raph sort of smiled for the picture, not that he'd admit it until the pictures were actually developed, though.

Mikey got his camera back and was instantly up in Raph's face again, trying to get him to smile for a picture. April watched the resulting squabbles in amusement, laughing with Donnie the whole time. They were having a blast!

* * *

 **So, since I wrote this in like 2012, all these "modern" poses April taught are totally outdated. I mean seriously, I haven't seen anyone do a duck-face in at least three years. Just didn't have the heart to change it, you know how nostalgia is. God bless middle school.**

 **Also, just because I'm a nerd, did anyone catch the 80s show reference in here? :)**

 **Be sure to R &R! **


	13. Chapter 13 - School!

**Sorry for the kind of longer update. There probably will be another long update on the next chapter because I'm going on a trip to visit an old friend. This fic is not on hiatus like _Blind Faith_ , though. That one is on a break because I was bummed about the absolute lack of feedback I was getting on multiple chapters. **

**I set up my turtles Tumblr, so if anyone wants to follow it, DM me for the URL!**

 **I'm also trying to write two new one-shots that I'm super excited about with concepts I find super fascinating, but the words just aren't flowing right. I can't think of what to say. Ugh. Writing's a struggle. I really do need a beta.**

 **Enjoy.**

* * *

After lunch, April took them to walk down Wall Street, and then to Tiffany's, where she cracked some jokes about eating breakfast that nobody but Donnie seemed to get. Mikey stared longingly at the wax museum, but Leo, shivering a little at the statues' dead eyes, dragged him on. They spent the rest of the day walking around Central Park, with Raph gleefully petting the pigeons.

But it was nearing the end of the day, and everyone was tuckered out.

"I think it's about time to call it quits, guys," April said, trying to stifle a yawn. The boys chorused their no's, Mikey even going so far as to drop to his knees and tug on the front of her jacket. "Oh, come on, Mikey, it's getting late, and I have to be up early tomorrow. I promise we can go out again to some more fun places this weekend." With school starting, she wasn't going to have quite so much time to spend at the lair as she used to, which actually kinda sucked, because of _course_ the turtles would figure out some way to be human when she was actually busy. She started herding them in the direction of her apartment complex, listening to their conversation absently.

"Can we please go to the wax museum this time?" Mikey pleaded.

"No way," Leo said, shaking his head.

"Oh come on, bro," Mikey said, exchanging a smirk with Raph. "They might even have a Captain Ryan statue you can get your picture taken with." Leo perked up at that, looking like he was actually considering it, and Donnie swallowed back a groan.

They ended up back at April's apartment, still bickering about the Captain Ryan wax statue, and April shook her head wearily, walking up to the door. They hung behind her, watching with wide eyes.

"... What?" she said, turning back.

"We've never gone in through the front door before," Mikey marveled. He bounded up to stand beside her on the steps. "Only the windows!"

April made a face. "Don't say that too loudly," she said, "or Sam will hear you."

Donnie stepped closer this time, wearing a dark expression. "Who's Sam?"

The door swung open behind April, and Mikey skittered back to his brothers. April didn't even turn to look.

"Hey Sam," she said cheerily enough, but looking at Donnie with an expression that said _really?_ Donnie had enough common sense to look properly abashed.

"Hi, April," the man who must be Sam said, stepping out and letting the door shut. He was wearing a dark uniform and had a flashlight, taser, and ring of keys attached to his belt. "Who are your friends?"

She turned to look at Sam and waved a hand at them. "Oh, I just met them around a while back," she said vaguely. "Friends of my dad. They might be staying with me for a while. Leo, Donnie, Raph, and Mikey."

He smiled at them. "It's nice to meet you boys," he said. "My name is Sam." They mumbled back similar greetings, only Leo coming forward to shake his hand.

April turned back to them, hands on her hips. "Sam's our building's security guard," she explained. "My aunt tells him to keep an eye on me when she's away on business."

Sam smiled at her. "Are you ready for school tomorrow?"

April made a face, screwing up her nose. "Of course not," she said, sounding bitter. "Only 180 days to go." Sam turned to the turtles and asked the same question, still smiling friendly enough.

Raph snickered. "We're not going to school," he said.

Sam's smile flickered, and Leo hastily stepped forward to explain. "We're homeschooled." He shot Raph a glare.

"We only recently came to live up here," Donnie added. "This is only temporary."

Sam's smile came back. "How long are you visiting for, then? Where's your parents?"

From behind Sam's back, April gave them a wary look that just screamed _be careful!_

"We don't know just how long yet," Donnie said slowly. "It may be a while." Leo gave him a sharp look at that, and he steadily ignored him.

"We don't have a mom," Mikey chirped, "and our dad lives underground, so he can't come up here with us."

Sam's smile froze, and April face-palmed.

Leo forced a laugh. "He's kidding," he said through gritted teeth. Raph smacked the back of Mikey's head, who whined and rubbed it sadly. "Our father is just... away on business most of the time."

"Oh," Sam didn't look satisfied with that answer, but he obviously wasn't going to press the parents issue anymore. "How are you homeschooled, then? Do you have a tutor?"

They froze, looking at each other with blank expressions. Mikey opened his mouth to respond, and Donnie slapped a hand over it, not really wanting Mikey to blow everything.

Sam's smile was definitely gone now. "You boys need to go to school," he said, almost a little scoldingly. "It's the law."

"We didn't really know," Leo said, exchanging a nervous look with Donnie. "We're _really_ not from around here."

"Our father is Japanese," Donnie said, and Leo hastily nodded his agreement.

Sam nodded. "I tell you what," he said, "you four meet me here tomorrow morning at 7, and I will help you get registered."

"Registered where?" Raph asked, looking at him with an expression of major distrust.

"School," Sam said slowly, looking at them as if they were all crazy. "I'll even give you a ride. You too, April." She looked frozen and helpless over his shoulder, unable to do anything.

"You really don't have to do that," Leo chuckled weakly.

Sam waved a hand, dismissing it. "It's really no problem. Tomorrow is my day off, and I'd be happy to help. Any friend of April's is a friend of mine." He tipped his hat and reached back to open the door. "I'll see the five of you tomorrow."

"Yeah," April said, walking through the door, giving them a look over her shoulder. "I'll see you guys tomorrow." She walked inside, and so did Sam, and the boys stood dumbfounded in the dark.

"Dude," Mikey said slowly, "are we going to school?" Raph groaned, but Donnie looked a little excited.

"Sensei's going to kill us," Leo moaned, dragging a hand down the side of his face. "What are we going to do?"

* * *

 **Man, I love Donnie and Leo hastily trying to do damage control for Mikey's and Raph's big mouths. Fun times.**

 **R &R!**


	14. Chapter 14 - Raph's Not Happy About This

**Wow, sorry for the long update guys! It's been about three weeks since I last updated. I've been busy with trips, work, and even a couple of dates, but I'm back now!**

 **Actually signed up for the 2018 TMNT Big Bang today, and I'm really excited! I have some ideas, just gotta figure out which one I want to do more. If anyone else is interested, the last day to sign up is July 11th, so you better act fast!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"Nice going, Fearless," Raph snarled, whirling on the others as soon as April and Sam had gone inside.

"Hey," Leo said in defense, hands raised, "it wasn't my fault! I was trying to cover for Mikey!"

"Our father lives underground?" Donnie said, turning to Mikey and frowning. "Seriously?"

"But it's the truth!" Mikey said, swinging out his arm and almost whacking Leo. "And since we're human now, nobody's gonna question it!"

"That's not how it works!" Raph hissed, cheeks turning bright red with anger. "I'm not going to any damn school!"

"It's just school," Donnie said. "It might be fun, even." Donnie, a little curious, watched Raph's expression grow stormier. A small part of him hoped that steam would start coming out of his ears next. Humans showed a physical response to anger so much differently than they did.

"Calm down, Raph," Leo said, placing a hand on Raph's shoulder and lookin fearfully up at the building. "You'll wake the neighbors." Raph shrugged the hand off his arm and looked like he was seriously struggling to calm down. The red slowly started to dissipate from his cheeks, and Leo sighed in relief. "Look, why don't we just go home and talk about this?"

"Can we pick up something to eat on the way home?" Mikey whined, dancing around them. "I'm starving!"

* * *

They tumbled into the lair, Mikey clutching a pizza box tightly to his chest and chattering about all the fun they could have meeting new people. Raph was still shooting angry glares at his brothers, pissed they were even in this mess. Leo and Donnie stayed uncharacteristically quiet about the whole thing. Once they arrived, Raph took off to the dojo without even stopping.

"Sensei," Raph kicked open the door and stalked over to where Splinter was meditating, hands on his hips. "Listen to this."

"You won't believe what happened today!" Mikey said, skipping inside to stand next to Raph. Still cradling his pizza, he launched into a rant of all the places they'd visited that day. Leo and Donnie slipped inside next to them.

Splinter watched and listened, a little confused as to why Raphael was upset. "It sounds like you boys had fun," he said slowly, and Raph's scowled deepened.

"Mikey didn't tell you the best part," he said sarcastically. "Shell-fer-brains here got us roped into going to school tomorrow!"

Splinter blinked, tail twitching. "School?" He turned to Leo and Donnie, eyebrows raised. Sighing, Leo explained to Splinter their conversation with Sam.

"See?" Raph gestured around wildly, face starting to grow red again. "School!"

"My sons, school seems like a very big step," Splinter said slowly. "I am not sure you four are prepared."

"I don't see anyway to get out of it," Donnie said. "If we stand up Sam tomorrow, he'll just get April involved, or worse, CPS. There's no way to deny our involvement with her. He has proof, and I'm sure the cameras caught us on tape since we were at the front door."

"And Mikey told the guy we lived underground! They could come after us!" Raph glared at Mikey again, who ignored him in favor of chomping into his pizza.

"Yeah, but don't you have to have a bunch of documents to register for school?" Leo asked, turning to look at Splinter worriedly. "We don't have any of that!"

Donnie looked a little sheepish. "I have that stuff, actually. Forged us all social security numbers and birth certificates, in case something like this happened. Since Sensei is really the only one in the system."

"Very smart, Donatello," Splinter said, and Donnie beamed at the praise. "Unfortunately, I think it may be wise for the four of you to find Sam and attend school tomorrow."

"What!" Raph's jaw dropped, and he looked at Splinter accusingly. He'd expected Splinter to be the one to back him up. "Why!?"

"They are expecting you, Raphael," Splinter said, a touch of hardness in his voice. Raph lowered his eyes and clenched his fists at his side. "It is temporary, my son. Remember, Donatello is working on developing a retro-mutagen."

Donnie blinked. In the excitement of the day, he'd actually forgotten about working on the formula more. "Oh... yeah," he said lamely. "Totally got it covered." Leo narrowed his eyes slightly.

Raph stormed out, and when Leo turned to go after him, Splinter held up a hand. "Let him go," he said. "He needs some time to adjust."

"But it's tomorrow," Leo said, still looking at his brother's retreating back. "Maybe Raph's right. We're not prepared for this at all."

"I think it's great!" Mikey said around a mouthful of crust. "We're gonna meet so many new people!"

"It'll be nice to see what a school environment is like," Donnie said, a little dreamily. He was thinking of state of the art lab equipment and a place where his intelligence could truly be utilized.

Leo still looked a little hesitant, and Splinter placed a hand on his shoulder. "I really don't know about this, Sensei," he said. "This could be good or bad."

Splinter nodded. "When I was a boy, there were days I did and did not look forward to. You will soon understand. This could be a valuable experience for you, but you will have to work hard." Leo nodded too, a little bit accepting, and Splinter smiled at him. "Go to bed. I will wake you early to prepare for school."

"Good night, Sensei," Leo said, and Donnie and Mikey chimed in, pulled out of their daydreams. They bowed and headed out to their rooms. Raph's door was shut, and the light was already off.

"Night, Raph!" Mikey called out. There was no answer, and he just shrugged and went into his own room. Donnie and Leo followed suit and were out immediately, dreams of the next day filling their heads.

Raph lay curled up in his bed, fuming. He really, really, _really_ hated this school decision. They'd barely been human for two days. Shell, he could barely do anything in this weak little body. They'd never even been around so many humans in their lives. Yeah, he'd had fun with April showing them around that morning, but he really missed the way life was before. And he was nervous, though he'd never tell his brothers that.

 _I'll get back to being a turtle,_ he vowed to himself, turning over and curling up more tightly. _And nothing's going to stop me!_

* * *

 **R &R!**


	15. Chapter 15 - Getting Ready

**Another update! I saw Mamma Mia 2 today and it was fantastic. I also watched episode 1 of ROTTMNT and it was really cute, too! I loved all the one-liners. It's free on iTunes right now if anybody needs a way to watch it...**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Raph awoke with a start. "Whoa!" he said, sitting up, chest heaving. _Man, I just had the WORST dream. I was human, and I had to go to school!_ He shuddered and jumped out of bed, rubbing his eyes. It was 5:30AM, and if he wasn't in the dojo for training in a couple of minutes, Leo would have his shell! He headed to the bathroom to go wash his face, absentmindedly scratching his bicep. He got to the sink and looked in the mirror. "Shell!" he swore, scowling at his reflection. The human staring back at him scowled, too. "It wasn't a dream!" He threw his hands in the air and went to go find his punching bag. They probably weren't training anyway.

He stomped out to the dojo, only to accidentally run into Splinter in the hallway. He stumbled back, and Splinter reached out a hand to steady him.

"Raphael," Splinter said, hand resting easily on Raph's shoulder. "I was just about to wake you."

"Sorry, Sensei," Raph muttered. He slipped out from under Splinter's hand and started heading in the direction of his punching bag. Splinter followed. "I just... I don't know. I just wanted to punch a little before school. I don't want to go."

Splinter nodded, looking a little amused. "Jitters. Yes."

"What? No!" Raph punched the bag, giving Splinter a defensive look. "I just don't want to go!"

Splinter seemed to study him for a moment. "I see. I am going to go wake up your brothers. When you have finished here, go get ready for school. I would like to see you in the living room before you all leave."

Raph mumbled his acquiescence, and Splinter headed back off in the direction of Mikey's room.

"Jitters... pfft," Raph muttered, hitting the bag hard enough it nearly swung back and knocked him over. Mikey, stumbling out of his room to go to the bathroom, witnessed it and laughed. Raph held up a fist, and Mikey clenched his jaw tightly shut with a squeak. He darted off quickly to the bathroom and locked the door behind him, trying to protect himself from Raph's wrath.

Groaning, Raph steadied the bag and headed back to his room. Punching wasn't making him feel better today. The nervous pit in his stomach nestled itself more deeply down in there, and he didn't like it one bit. He didn't usually get butterflies! But there was something about this whole being human thing that made him feel more vulnerable than ever. He pulled on his jeans from the day before, not yet confident enough in his abilities to pick out something decent to wear.

After brushing his teeth, he headed back out to the living room, hearing his brothers' voices. He saw them wearing pretty much the same clothes as yesterday, too. (April would really have to show them how to work the laundromat at some point). Donnie was babbling excitedly about the classes he wanted to take, exchanging wide, excited grins with Mikey bouncing next to him. Leo looked a little more reserved, and when he smiled at Raph, Raph could see the nervous little furrow between his eyes that gave away his true thoughts.

Donnie pushed a camera into his hands, and Raph shoved it into his back pocket, rolling his eyes when Donnie gave him a look.

"What are you looking forward to most, Raphie?" Mikey bounced up to him and hung on his shoulder. Raph shoved him off with a snort.

"Don't call me that," he snapped. "And I'm not looking forward to any of this! Why waste our time with this whole school thing? We're not staying human for long." Leo looked a little startled at the outburst, and Donnie looked at his feet like he was trying to hide something. Raph narrowed his eyes. "What, Donnie?"

"My sons," Splinter cleared his throat, and the four of them turned to look at their sensei, tensions still high. "It is time to go. I will see you after school." He started to corral them towards the exit, handing them each a worn notebook and pen. He looked so excited, Raph didn't really want to ruin his excitement. "It has long been a wish of mine that you boys would be able to experience some of the same things the humans do - things I did when I was human - to not miss out." He looked Raph dead in the eye and smiled. "Enjoy this time. It will not be around forever." He sighed. "You boys grow up so fast."

Raph felt Leo stiffen at his side. That was a line that made it sound like Splinter was about to go into one of his turtle tot spiels again. Uh oh.

"Sensei," Leo said, doin this best to make his eyes wide and as puppy-doggish as possible. If anything, Leo was the only one of his brothers less equipped to deal with other people's feelings than he was, and that was saying something. "We really do have to go. We don't want to be late for April or Sam..."

"I can't wait to tell you everything that happened when I get home!" Mikey chirped.

"I'm going to take studious notes on everything," Donnie said with equal excitement. Raph rolled his eyes. What a nerd.

Splinter smiled. "Have fun, my sons. But remember, do be careful of your words this time." He gave a pointed look to Mikey, who had the decency to look somewhat abashed. he finished herding them out the door, and soon enough they were off slogging to the nearest manhole cover.

As soon as they were out of Splinter's line of sight, Donnie studiously ignored Raph's pointed looks to grab his attention. Raph's bullshit meter was on the rise. He'd get it out of him. He just had to bide his time... and make it out of school alive.

How hard could that be?

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 **Oh boy, Raph has no idea... please R &R! **


	16. Chapter 16 - Getting Ready Part 2

**Sorry for the delay! Yesterday was my last day of work. Woohoo! Enjoy.**

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April was waiting for them at the base of her building. She was sitting on the front steps, chin in her hand, other hand scrolling on her phone. She looked up when they approached, eyes lighting up. She jumped up instantly, shoving her phone into her back pocket.

"Hey, guys!" she beamed and hoisted her backpack up off the ground. "Sam will be here soon." She started leaning back, the backpack dragging her down, and her arms wobbled comically in the air. "Whoa!"

"April!" Donnie grabbed one of her arms and jerked her back up. "Let me carry it," he offered.

"Thanks!" She slid the backpack off her shoulders and over to him, where he almost dropped it after feeling how heavy it was. When April turned away, he flashed a giant grin at Leo, who shook his head fondly.

 _He means well_ , Leo thought to himself, shaking his head at Donnie's overly-excited antics.

"Here." April pushed Donnie around to face her backpack and pulled out four tightly rolled backpacks. She handed one to each boy. Raph shook it out and peeked inside; there were a couple of pencils and some sticky notes. "These are some of my old ones that you can have, just until you either find some or turn back. Sorry I couldn't find more supplies last night. I'll see if I can find some more this afternoon."

"Hey, I ain't wearing no pink backpack!" Raph growled, holding up the bag in disgust. Subtly, Leo tilted up his camera. "It has Care Bears on it!"

"That was my kindergarten backpack," April said, rolling her eyes at Raph's fit. She switched it with Mikey's solid blue bag.

"Awesome! Bears!" Mikey exclaimed, pressing his nose up against the fabric. Raph rolled his eyes and met Leo's gaze, who heaved a knowing sigh. Donnie shoved his laptop down into his bag and fumbled for his camera, snapping a picture of Mikey with his pink backpack. Donnie grinned widely, meeting Leo's gaze with a smirk. He knew exactly what Leo was doing earlier when Raph held the bag up. Blackmail for life!

A dark blue van pulled up, and Sam stuck his head out the driver side window. He was wearing casual clothes, not the fancy uniform from the night before. "Morning, kids," he said with a grin. "Get in!" April snagged shotgun, and the rest of the boys piled into the back.

"You have shorter legs!" Donnie argued to Raph, pushing him to the very back row. "You gotta sit in the back!"

Leo shrugged primly. "I'm the oldest," he said, when Raph demanded to know why he also got to sit in the middle.

"Don't worry, Raph. There's plenty of room," Mikey said. Raph threw his bag in the back and climbed in, glaring at his brothers over his shoulder. "Smile!" Mikey said when Raph finally got strapped in. He held up his camera. Raph frowned and pushed him away as Mikey tried to take a picture of them in the backseat. Mikey let out a wounded noise, and everyone looked back at them again.

"Raph," April scolded. "Be nice!"

"Yeah, Raph," Donnie echoed. "Be nice." Raph narrowed his eyes and held up a fist, and Donnie winced and leaned away.

Sam looked a little uncomfortable at the squabble threatening to break out. "So," he said awkwardly, meeting Leo's gaze in the mirror, "are you boys excited for school?"

Raph groaned loudly.

After several minutes of awkward, idle chit-chat, they finally drove up to a tall brick building. Sam parked the car in one of the visitor spots, and everyone slowly filed out.

"Sam, you're going in?" April asked, tilting her head to the side. He blinked, and she gave a hasty chuckle. "No offense."

"None taken," he said, patting her reassuringly on the shoulder. "Just wanna make sure you boys get registered. Can't have any of you running off now, can we?"

"Right!" Mikey said, beaming. "Though who would wanna run off?"

Leo clamped a hand on Raph's shoulder, who'd been hastily looking around for any and every escape route possible, and started pulling him along after Sam and the others. As they walked up the front steps, April took lots and lots of pictures, watching their faces excitedly. It seemed her annoyance at almost busting their secret the previous night was gone.

 _Well,_ Raph thought. _Here's to torture._ After they all walked in, the door slammed shut behind them, like it was locking them into a prison cell. _Yup!_ Raph thought sarcastically. _Definitely_ _torture!_

* * *

 **Poor Raph. Just wait until next chapter, when they actually get to start school! R &R please! **


	17. Chapter 17 - Homeroom

**Ooh, sorry for such a late update, guys! But don't worry, I haven't abandoned this story yet! These last few weeks have been hectic. School's started, I've already had 3 tests, and I might change my major. Oof.**

 **Anyway, hope y'all are still enjoying this! :)**

* * *

"Hello! Welcome to GreyStone High! How may I help you?" A smiling, bubbly secretary beamed at them as the group walked in. Leo saw Raph shudder at her peppiness out of the corner of his eye, and he had to stifle his grin.

"Hello," Sam greeted, smiling back. "These boys need to be registered for school. They're new."

"New!" she gasped and turned towards them, eyes wide. "Where are you boys from? Oh, and April!"

April gave her a small wave. "Hey, Ms. Jones," she said.

"We're from here," Leo said, startling a little as Ms. Jones' age turned expectantly on him next.

"We were homeschooled!" Mikey chirped, yelping when Raph stomped on his foot.

"Homeschooled," Ms. Jones repeated. "That's... nice. Well, all you boys have to do is fill out some paperwork, and you'll be registered. Sound good?" She dug under her desk and pulled out a large stack of papers, setting them on the counter in front of her desk.

Raph groaned, and they all stared in disbelief. "Seriously?" he said. "Come on, can't we just go home? That's so much work."

"Just wait until you actually have to start doing homework," Donnie snarked, and Raph shot him a glare without any of its usual venom.

"Well boys, let's get started! We don't want you to be late on your first day!" Sam reached for the first paper and tossed Donnie a pen.

Filling out the information as best they could (asking Donnie every five seconds what their fake social security numbers were again), they finally gave Ms. Jones back the stack of papers, hands cramping. Sam had to slip out in the middle of it, now that he was satisfied they had adult supervision and weren't going to run off.

"My hand! My haaaand!" Mikey wailed, massaging his palm gingerly. Even Leo silently agreed.

"Good thing that's all done now!" Ms. Jones said. "Now, on to the fun stuff - your schedules!"

Donnie perked up. "Do we get to choose our classes now?" he asked, eyes wide and hopeful.

Ms. Jones hesitated. "Well, you boys really need to take placement tests to see how much you know from your time homeschooling." She barely looked up from where she was typing their information into the system. "We really don't have time for that before school, so for now I am setting you in the basic curriculum. If that is fine by you, we'll leave it at that, but if you need any adjustment to your classes, come stop by here at homeroom this week, and I can move you. For now, I'll try to keep you all together, too."

Donnie's shoulders slumped a little bit, but he seemed to accept her words. "I'll just come by later," he said, and Raph made a sarcastic comment under his breath about how 'Poor Donnie had to sit around in normal kid classes now, poor genius,' to which all of his brothers ignored him.

Ms. Jones printed out four papers and handed them over. "Your locker numbers and combinations are also on here. April, I assume you'll show your friends around?"

April nodded, pulling out her own schedule from her backpack. "Sure thing," she said.

Ms. Jones clapped her hands together and stood up. "Great! If you want to make sure you make it to homeroom on time, you best get going. I hope you boys have a great first day today!" Leo thanked her as April led them away.

"She seems nice," Mikey said. "And she's pretty!"

"She's only like the second girl you've ever seen," Leo pointed out, and Mikey just shrugged.

"Yeah," April said distractedly, nose buried in her schedule. "She erased a lot of tardies from my record last year. She's cool. Here, this way."

She navigated them down hallway after hallway, pointing out specific classrooms and teachers on their way. Mikey hardly paid attention, instead taking pictures of every single locker they passed by. Donnie stared wistfully at the upper level science classrooms they passed. Raph dragged his feet more and more with every new step, and of course, Leo dutifully listened.

When they got to their lockers, April explained how to use the combination to open them. Everybody got it but Raph, who got so fed up that he ripped the door off! He shoved his bag in and slammed the door back on. When he turned around, his expression was so sour that even April instinctively shied away.

More and more kids had began to arrive, and soon the hallway was crowded and loud, full of students laughing and talking after not seeing each other for the summer. The boys stared in awe at all the people swarming around them.

"So many new friends!" Mikey all but squealed, bouncing up and down on his heels. Raph leaned up against the locker, head ducked but green eyes warily alert.

The bell rang, and Mikey howled, clamping his hands over his ears. His brothers did the same, grimacing. "What's that noise?"

April laughed. "That's the bell. Come on, we have to get to homeroom." She weaved them in and out around the crowd and into a classroom at the end of the hall. She was still laughing when they sat down. They sat in the back of the classroom. Donnie was awkwardly too tall for the desk, his legs splayed uncomfortably out in the aisle. April laughed even harder when she turned around and saw him.

The bell rang again, with Mikey still covering his ears. The teacher stood in front of the board and put her hands on her hips, waiting expectantly for the talking to cease. Leo felt an odd thrill in his stomach as she opened her mouth to speak.

"Hello, class. I hope you all have had a good summer. My name is Ms. Davis, and although this is only homeroom, I teach Algebra 2 with Trig. If anybody is in the wrong class, now is your time to leave." She paused for a moment, and when nobody moved, nodded. "Good. Now, the first thing you need to know about the way I run my classroom is that rough-housing is not allowed. You are here to learn or to study quietly."

Mikey raised his hand, even though Donnie hastily tried to grab it and hold it down from the seat behind him.

Ms. Davis saw him and jutted her chin towards him. "Yes, the young man in the orange shirt. What's your question?"

"What does rough-housing mean?" The class burst into laughter, and Ms. Davis narrowed her eyes.

"That isn't funny," she said, frowning.

"But I really don't know what it means!" Mikey protested.

Leo sighed. Mikey probably _didn't_ know what it meant.

"I will not answer stupid questions designed to rile the class up," Ms. Davis said. "Young man, what is your name?"

"Michelangelo. But call me Mikey!"

"Michelangelo. I will not tolerate your stupidity, goofiness, or desire to be a 'class clown' in homeroom this year." Mikey looked like he'd been slapped, and Ms. Davis turned her back to face the board. The room had grown eerily quiet, some still looking to the back of the classroom with wide eyes.

"Hey!" Raph called out from behind Leo, who slapped a hand over his eyes. "Don't call my brother an idiot!"

Ms. Davis whipped around, looking outraged. "Whoever just said that, stand up!"

Leo turned to face Raph, trying to give him a pleading look. _We just got here,_ Leo begged silently, trying to convey it through his eyes, _don't mess this up!_

Raph seemed to consider this for a moment, and then he lifted his gaze evenly to match Ms. Davis'. "Make me," he said, jutting his chin in the air and leaning back in his chair, putting his feet on his desk. Leo turned around to look at Ms. Davis and noticed all these girls starting to look back at them in interest.

"What is your name?"

"Raph."

"Your real name!"

"It's Raph!"

Ms. Davis stalked over and grabbed her roll. "Michelangelo, Raphael, zip it!" She laughed at their names. "Oh, and I suppose Leonardo and Donatello are here, too?"

Donnie raised his hand weakly. "Present?" he said.

Ms. Davis flipped to the second page, saw the other two names, and her eyes grew wide. "This is why they should split up siblings," she muttered, loud enough for the whole class.

The bell rang to signal the end of homeroom, and Leo sighed in relief. They shuffled out of the classroom, Raph exchanging a look of daggers with Ms. Davis as he walked out the door.

"Oh, Raphie!" Mikey said, flinging his arms around Raph's neck. "You stood up for me! I always knew you cared!"

"Get off me," Raph said, shoving Mikey off. "Man, I already hate school. Especially her! Come on, Leo, can't I just go home?"

"Sorry, Raph," Leo said, feeling a little sympathetic towards Raph pleading, sad look. "Talk to Splinter tonight about it."

"Donnie?" Mikey asked, interrupting whatever rude retort Raph was going to make.

"What, Mikey?"

"I still don't know what rough-housing means!"

* * *

 **Ms. Davis was the name of a super strict teacher I actually had in elementary school. Nowhere near as bad as this, however.**

 **R &R! **


	18. Chapter 18 - First Period

**Another update! Life's catching up to me fast, but I've also been working on my TMNT Big Bang fic! I'm about 3000 words in, so I hope to finish it soon. Enjoy.**

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"So, what class do we have to go to first?" Donnie asked, opening his locker and running a finger over his notebooks.

Leo pulled out his schedule from his back pocket and smoothed out the wrinkles. "Looks like we're going back to math," he said, already dreading it based on how homeroom went. "Back to Ms. Davis."

Raph groaned, but Donnie's eyes lit up. "I love math!" he said excitedly, and Raph slammed his locker door shut, scowling.

"Oh, shut up!" Raph growled, leaning against the lockers as he waited for his brothers. "You're the only one she liked!"

"Oh, come on guys," April said encouragingly. "She's really not all that bad... just don't antagonize her." Raph gave her a look, but she continued. "This could work! I bet she doesn't hate you."

"Yeah, right," Raph said. He didn't bother to wait for a response and instead stalked back into the classroom. April's shoulders slumped a bit, and Leo patted her reassuringly on the shoulder.

The rest of the gang followed back in and sat down in their desks, Donnie and Mikey chattering excitedly about actually starting class soon. Raph leaned back in his chair, putting his feet up on the desk. Leo wrote his name on the top of his notebook, tapping his pencil on the paper. Finally, the bell rang to signal the start of the period.

Automatically, Ms. Davis stood up and began to call roll. She went through the list, calling April's name and just a blur of other students. When she called "Michelangelo," Mikey responded with such enthusiasm it seemed he'd already forgotten about the roughhousing incident.

"Raphael," she called.

"Yeah," Raph said. She levied a glare at him, and he met it evenly back. She cracked first and looked down at her roster. "If I call roll, you must respond with 'here' or 'present.' Understood?" He grunted back, and she sighed, obviously irritated already. "My name is Ms. Davis for those of you not in my homeroom class. Today, we will be learning about each other. Tomorrow, we will start with our first chapter of the year: polynomials." She smiled. "April, start please. Share your name and an interesting fact about you."

April blinked. "Uh, my name is April. I don't really have an interesting fact. My best friends are these four right here?" She shrugged and winked at Mikey.

Around the room people went, Raph immediately forgetting their names as soon as they opened their mouths. It finally worked its way back around to the others, and Donnie stood up first.

"My name is Donatello. I really like computers, and science, and experimenting. Actually, in my lab at home, I'm working on-" Raph yanked him back down into his chair, and Donnie shot him a glare.

Leo cleared his throat, giving a small wave. "I'm Leonardo. I'm the oldest of my brothers, and I really like the TV show _Space Heroes._ " There was a couple of people whose eyes lit up in interest at that. One girl waved at him and pointed to her shirt, which had a posed picture of Captain Ryan on it. He beamed back at her. When it was Mikey's turn, he went on about pizza for a bit until the kid after him forcibly interrupted. Then it was Raph's turn.

Raph groaned and swung his feet off the desk. "Sup. I'm Raphael. Call me Raph, or we won't get along." He glared at Ms. Davis when he said that, and then immediately clunked his head down on the desk and zoned out. Next time he looked up, he noticed this girl staring at him from across the room. He glared at her, and she glared right back, rolling her eyes and turning away. _What's her deal?_ he thought to himself, both parts irritated and intrigued. He stared at the back of her head, but she ignored him and refused to turn around.

"And thank you, Zach!" Ms. Davis's shrill voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "Now, we can start polynomials. I didn't expect to finish early. We will finish this lecture tomorrow." Turning around to the board, she picked up a marker and began to lecture.

 _Aw, shell_ , Raph thought. _I missed her name!_ He kicked himself mentally, and now he couldn't take his eyes off her high ponytail. Leo glanced over during the lecture and noticed Raph seemed totally out of it, so he followed his gaze back to the girl and stifled a laugh. Raph! And a girl! He bit back a gleeful snort. Good thing he knew her name; he'd have to talk to Raph later...

* * *

 **Any ideas on who the girl is? R &R if you want a quick update! **


	19. Chapter 19 - Raph's in Loveeee

**Sorry! Long time no update. Hope everyone had a good holiday season. Classes this semester are kicking me hard already. Anyways, enjoy!**

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Polynomials made Mikey's head spin, and he staggered out behind his brothers when the bell to end first period sounded. "Ugh, dudes, my head hurts." April patted him on the back sympathetically, and Raph whirled around in front of him.

"Hallelujah," Raph all but spat. "I hate that class, I hate this school, and I already know I hate Mrs. Davis!"

"I know!" Mikey said, throwing his hands up. "Who starts teaching on the first day of class! I don't even know what a poly-whatever is still!"

"At least we have gym next," April said reassuringly. "That might be a bit more your speed."

Raph ignored her, too busy being caught up in his rant. He was walking backwards down the hallway, waving his arms wildly about. Donnie ignored him, nose buried in a perfectly neat transcript of his notes.

Leo ducked under Raph's stray arm and sighed, fighting off the beginning of a migraine. "Raph, calm down - watch out!"

Raph, not paying attention to where he was going, crashed into a girl, and they both tumbled to the floor. Mikey cackled in delight, April whipping out her phone to take a quick picture of the look of utmost surprise on Raph's face.

"Watch where you're going!" The girl snarled, shoving Raph off of her and picking up her books. Raph turned, bristling, when he realized it was the girl from homeroom!

His jaw dropped a little bit, and all his bravado disappeared. He stuttered over his words, mindlessly letting Leo help him up. The girl rolled her eyes and stomped off, and the boys watched her go.

Still snickering, Mikey whacked Raph in the arm. "You got dissed! By a _girl_!" He laughed even harder, and Raph, shaking his head to clear his thoughts, punched him back.

"Her temper was a lot like yours," Donnie commented. "You should apologize."

"Me?!" Raph shook his head wildly. "It wasn't my fault! She ran into me!"

Donnie snorted, and Raph gave him a weak glare.

"You should," Leo said, letting April, Donnie, and Mikey precede him into the gym. "And then you can get her name, lovestruck." Leo smirked as Raph's head whipped around at him. "I saw you staring at her in math."

"I am _not_ lovestruck!" Raph said, rolling his eyes. "Wait, did you catch her name?"

Leo laughed, relishing in his newfound position over Raph. "I did."

Raph glared at him. "Tell me!" he demanded.

Leo smirked at him again and walked into the gym. Raph growled and followed him in, fighting the urge to tackle Leo from the back. He scowled at his brothers, the look only deepening when Donnie's grin grew.

"Oh, Raphieeee!" Mikey said. Donnie's smile grew even more, and April even tried to hide one behind her hand.

"What?"

"Your girlfriend is in here." Mikey made kissy noses, and Raph growled, low in his throat.

"Where?"

Mikey pointed over his shoulder, and Raph half turned to look. She was with a few friends, and they were all laughing with her. She punched a friend in the arm and play-scowled, a grin still on her face.

"Shell, she really is a lot like you!" Mikey said.

Leo nudged Raph and gave him a pointed look in her direction. Raph actually looked... nervous. Leo rolled his eyes. His brother would fearlessly charge and fight fully trained ninjas, no big deal. But talking to a girl? It's the end of the world!

Leo gripped Raph's arm and tried to pull him towards the girl.

"What the shell, Leo!" Raph tried to fight him off, but Leo merely tightened his grip. "No way!"

"I can't believe you're being a chicken, Raph!" Donnie called out mockingly, and Mikey bawked and pretended to flap around.

Raph growled and with one final push, shoved Leo off of him. "Hey, you wouldn't even tell me her name. I definitely don't need your help!"

Leo snorted. "Apparently you do! Just apologize, Raph. Simple." Raph growled again but stalked forward. Leo followed him, trying to fight the amused grin off his face.

Raph stopped and looked at him, and Leo hastily made his face neutral. "Do you have to come?" Raph asked sarcastically. Leo nodded, and Raph rolled his eyes. He came up behind the girl, whose back was now facing them, and her friends' eyes grew wide. She turned around, and her eyes grew wide.

"Um, hey. I, uh, just wanted to, um, say that..." Raph stuttered, and Leo hit him hard on the back. "I'm sorry, I guess, for knocking you over." He cringed at himself, inwardly smacking himself. What a mess! He sounded like a nerd.

She let out a breath. "It's okay. Sorry, I snapped at you. I wasn't really paying attention either. And I may or may not have a bit of a problem with my temper." She gave a sheepish smile, and all her friends nodded their agreement behind her. Leo met one of their gazes and gave them a sympathetic, 'I feel your pain' look.

Raph, on the other hand, gave her a crooked grin back. "I can relate. You can ask my bros." She laughed, and his grin grew even more. "I'm Raph."

"Mona." She stuck out a hand, and a little hesitantly, she shook it, wincing a little bit at the unexpected strength behind her grip.

 _Ugh, she really is a female version of Raph!_ Leo thought to himself. _This is going to be interesting._

* * *

 **It's Mona! This is an AU, so no, she is not the same as 2012 Mona. Anyways, please R &R! **


	20. Chapter 20 - Dodgeball

**Wow, guys! This story placed SECOND in the "Best Comedy" section for the 2018 Universal Reader's Choice Awards. What an honor! Thanks to whoever voted for me... I'd love to know y'all's fav parts of the story so far!**

 **Enjoy.**

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"Alright! Everyone, circle up!" The coach in the center of the gym blew a whistle, and the students crowded around. "For those of you who don't know me, my name is Coach Griffin. Since today's the first day of school, we'll be doing something fun - dodgeball."

Mikey stood up and fist pumped. "YES!" he screeched, and the other students looked at him in shock. Coach Griffin glared, and Leo yanked him back down.

"Sorry," Leo called out. "He just gets really excited at the thought of pelting our brother." The class tittered, and Griffin looked like she wanted to roll her eyes.

"... Anyway. Our first unit, basketball, will start next week, so everyone needs to bring their change of gym clothes by then. Tomorrow we'll be assigning lockers and combinations."

As Griffin started droning on and on, Raph leaned in next to Mona. "Do you like dodgeball?"

"Dodgeball is the best!" she said.

"My brother's and I've never played," Raph confessed, and Mona's ponytail almost whipped him in the face with how fast she turned her head. "Homeschooled," he said as way of explanation.

"Right," she said. "How many brothers do you have? Besides Leo, I mean."

"Two more," Raph said, jerking a thumb in Donnie's and Mikey's directions. "Loud-mouth and nerd over there."

She snorted. "So you're the brawn?"

His chest puffed up. "You could say that."

A smirk spread across her face. "Then I can't wait to kick your tail," she said.

Raph blinked, surprised, and grinned back. "You're on!"

Griffin had made her way through the crowd to Raph and Mona. "You," she said, pointing at Mona. "On the left." She directed Raph to the right. Mona made a face and trotted over to her side. Raph joined his brothers on the other.

"Leave Mona to me," Raph whispered to his brothers. Mikey made kissing noises, and Leo rolled his eyes. She met his eyes from across the gym and smiled.

Griffin blew the whistle, finished rolling the balls on the center line of the gym. "Ready? Three, two, one... GO!" Everyone rushed forward to snag a ball. Mikey, trying to pick up every ball, was hit in the foot almost immediately.

"No fair!" he whined. "That wasn't very nice!"

Donnie laughed at him, distracted by the sight of pouting Mikey on the sidelines, and was hit in the thigh. Then there were two pouting Hamato's on the bleachers.

Slowly but surely, kids dwindled out. Leo and Raph were super excited, using their training to jump around avoid the balls flying out them. Unfortunately, someone on the other side caught one of Leo's balls, and so Leo trudged out, much to the disappointment of his team. Raph was alone, and a few people on the opposite team just left because he was so big.

Soon enough it was just Raph and Mona.

She had a playful grin on her face. "You gonna get me out?" she yelled.

"Unless you get me out first!" he yelled back.

"Ugh, now we gotta watch them flirt," Mikey made a gagging noise. Leo was a little amused.

Raph held two dodgeballs in his hands, and Mona, sensing an opportunity to get him out, chunked hers at his chest. In the last second before impact, Raph dropped his balls and caught hers, and the crowd erupted as the kids ran back onto the court.

Raph walked back to his brothers, a proud grin on his face. "Nice job, hothead," Leo said, teasing. "Hope that didn't tire you out too badly." Raph whacked him on the shoulder, too pleased with himself to get worked up.

Griffin blew her whistle. "We're going to switch up teams this time. I need some of you to line the balls back up."

In the downtime, Raph tried to find Mona, but she was nowhere in sight. "Where is she?"

Griffin came up in front of their group and pointed to the left. "You, in the blue, on the left." Leo blinked in surprise and started walking. She directed Donnie, Mikey, and April that way, too. Raph went to follow them and Griffin blew her whistle in his ear.

He scowled, rubbing the side of his head. "What was that for?" he demanded.

"Where do you think you're going?" she said. He pointed after his brothers. Griffin shook her head. "On the right."

"But-"

"On the right!"

Raph's scowl deepened, but he stomped over to the right.

"Raph!" A girl's voice rang out. "We're on the same team! Also, you suck for getting me out."

Raph's scowl disappeared instantly, and he turned to look at Mona mock-frowning at him, hands on her hips.

"Alright!" he said, holding a hand up for a high-five. She smacked his hand, leaving Raph feeling like an electric shock had run through his body. "The only bad thing is we're up against my bros."

She smirked at him. "We can take them," she said. In the midst of their conversation, the game had already started. A dodgeball zoomed between their heads and smacked into the wall behind them. Mona yelped and jumped back. Raph whipped around. Mikey, all the way from the other side of the gym, was making faces and blowing kisses.

Raph growled. "It's on!" He and Mona ran up to try and take them down.

"Mona," Raph grunted as he caught a ball against his chest. "I'd like you to meet my bros!"

"Little busy here, Raph!" She hit away a ball. "Maybe after we all get out?"

"Who said I'm going to get out?" He threw the ball he caught directly at Mikey and clipped him in the shoulder. "HA!" he crowed, meeting Mikey's dirty glare with a mocking look.

"This is going to be fun," Mona said, ducking behind Raph as a ball whizzed at her.

Raph couldn't help but agree. Seems like high school was finally looking up.

* * *

 **R &R! :) **


End file.
